Name-finder.



No. 721,342. PATENTED IPEB.24,1903.

. s. M. moms.

NAME FI NDER. APPLICATION FILED JULY 14, 1902- 10 IODEL.

I WITNESSES} l/V VENTOR ATTORNE).

UNITED STATES PATENT ()FFICE.

STEPHEN THOMAS, OF OMAHA, NEBRASKA.

NAME-FINDER.

SPECIFICATION 7 Application filed July 14, 1902.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that LSTEPHEN M. THOMAS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Omaha, in the county of Douglas and State of Nebraska, have invented'certain new and useful Improvements in Name-Finders; and

I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to name-finders for use with alphabeticallyarranged ledgers, indexes, or name-lists.

It is the object thereof to provide acouvenient, simple, and economical method for finding any required name from such arrangements as above indicated.

A furtherobject of my invention is to provide a name-finding device which may be applied to indexes, ledgers, or namelists already compiled.

In the accompanying drawings I have illustrated in Figure 1 a page or sheet of my namefinding device, and in Fig. 2 a page, sheet, or division of the name-listreferred to in the finder-sheetj The latter is a portion of that part of a name-list containing the surnames beginning with the letter S, and the surnames in the list need have no other arrange ment than that of being arranged alphabetically according to the first letter therein.

The finder-sheet is divided into a number of vertical columns having the letters"A, B, O, D, &c., placed at the top thereof, and the said columnsare ruled across for convenience in writing the reference letters and numerals therein. Some of the columns may have twoor more ofthe less frequently used letters therein-as, for example, the columns headed KL, PQR, XYZ, &c. while with the letters used most frequently two columns may be given to one letter-as, for instance, the letter J which appears in two columns. These methods of placing the letters may be varied according to the requirements of the name-list with which the finder is used. The columns A, B, C, 850.,

of slips pasted between the pages of the name-list.

thereof.

forming part of Letters Patent No. 721,342, dated February 24, 1903.

Serial Ila. 115.5 8'7. (No model.)

The finder may also be made in the form of a book separate from the namelist or may be divided into its component sheets and inserted at convenient positions in the name-list with which it is used, one findersheet being used with each page or with each division of the list. Another means would be to print the finder-sheet integral with the pages of the name-list.

Each division of the name-list is divided into any suitable numberof sections, marked 1, 2, 3, 4, &c. The said sections may be merely the lines of a page or may include a number of lines. In the drawings two names are shown in each section.

In compiling the finder-sheet from the name-list the second initial letter and the number of the section containing the name is written in the column of the finder-sheet bearing the first initial letter of the name. Thus the name J. H. Showalter is referred to in the finder-sheet in column J as H-12, the name L. A. Schneider is referred to in the finder und er column L as A-19, the name H. E. Schwack is referred to under column H as E-7, &c.

In using the finder-sheet to determine the location of a name thesecondinitialis found under the column bearing the first initial, and the number after the second initial is the number of the section containing the name. Thus to find the location of the name D. O. Schrider, under column D of the findersheet is seen the letter 0 followed by the numeral '21. The name is located in section 21. To find the name J. B. Scan- ]an, under column J is found 13-11. The name will be in section '11.

In names having no second initial letter'the last letter of the surname is used in place To distinguish letters so used from the regular second initial, the same may be written in small letters instead of capitals, as are the initials. Thus the name H. Silly is referred to in column H as y-19, the name Blanch Sickle is referred to under column B as 9-21, 850. I

Firm-names are referred to by the initial letter of the second part of the firm-name and the last letter of the first part of the firmname. Thus Sears, Colsom & Co. is referred to under column 0 as s-15, the

firm-name Seely Mnfg. Co. is referred to under column 1 as y-6, &o.

Where two or more names have the same reference-letters therein, one or more of the said surnames may be written out in full or partly abbreviated on the finder-sheet. Thus the names WVm. Saunders and Wm. Scoins are found referred to under column W as s4 and s-16-Sc0ins, respectively. The names Chas. Schaiier and Conrad Schneider are referred to under column O as r-D-Schfr and r-22, respectively.

It is obvious that other variations of the system may be made, such as underlining the reference-letters to distinguish female from male names, &c., or that other reference-letters may be chosen, such as always using the last letter of the surname instead of the second initial letter; but my invention contemplates such variations.

The essential of my invention consists in dividing a name-list into sections and c011- secutively numbering said sections, then choosing from the names two series of reference-letters, and placing the letters of one series and the numbers of the sections containing the names having the respective reference-letters thereinin columns designated by the reference-letters of the other series.

Now,.having described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is

1. In a name-finder for indicating the location of names in a name-list, numbered sections containing the names, two referenceletters taken from each name in the namelist according to any suitable uniform system, one of said reference-letters placed in a column indicated by the other reference-letter, and a number placed adjacent to the former of said reference-letters, said number indicating the section containing the name having therein the said reference-letters.

2. Aname-fiuderforindicatingthelocation of names in a name-list, comprising marked sections containing the names, columns marked by letters, and one letter of each name, and a mark indicating the section containing the name, placed in a column marked by another letter of the name.

3. Inaname-finderandin combination with a name-list divided into'sections, columns marked by letters,two reference-letters chosen from each name of the name-list according to any suitable uniform system, and one of said reference-letters, and a mark indicating the section containing the name, placed in the column marked by the other reference-letter.

4. In aname-finder and in combination with a name-list divided into numbered sections, columns marked by the letters of the alphabet, and the second initial letter of each name, together with the number of the section containing the name,placed in the column marked by the first initial letter of the name.

5. In a name-finder and in combination with a name-list divided into numbered sections, columns marked by the letters of the alphabet, and the last letter of each surname, together with the number of the section containingthename,placed in thecolumn marked by the initial letter of the given name.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

STEPHEN M. THOMAS.

Witnesses:

D. O. BARNELL, HARRY S. SMITH. 

